


A Fish Out of Water

by Katsudonace



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, Family Fluff, Fluff, Found Family, M/M, Meet the Family, mermaid!Keith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 12:54:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13147134
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katsudonace/pseuds/Katsudonace
Summary: Every year, Lance visits his family for Christmas, but this time, he has a guest, his boyfriend, Keith. They've lived together for a month, and Lance knows that he's the one, but as they prepare and spend time with his family, he can't stop the feeling that Keith is hiding something from him. Little does he know, just how strange that secret might be.





	A Fish Out of Water

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ashesrose](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashesrose/gifts).



> This is for [Starlightlance](http://starlightlance.tumblr.com/) for the [Antis VLD Gift Exchange](https://antisvldexchange.tumblr.com/), who wanted "I love content that has to with hurt/comfort in the canonverse, fantasy aus (especially mermaids), and for Christmas themes maybe Keith spending Christmas with Lance’s family ?? (canonverse or modern au)." I decided to combine the mermaid prompt and the Christmas prompt, so let's hope this works.
> 
> EDIT: Thank you, Jayce, for the amazing fan art of Keith in his mermaid form! [Look at it here!](https://mishcakess.tumblr.com/post/169215620695/lancesgalaxy-i-got-a-tablet-and-to-get-used-to-it)
> 
> EDIT 2: Also, anyone who has read this before will notice that I changed Lance's brother's name in this. Since we found out the names of his siblings, I decided to update this to make it match with canon, especially since I have some prequels and sequels planned.

Lance paced outside the door to the bathroom, feeling nervous as he waited for Keith to come out. He could hear the hairdryer still running, and it’d been an hour since Keith had finished his bath. There was still time before they had to show up at Lance’s parents’ house for Christmas dinner, though it was hard for Lance not to worry. He wanted everything to be perfect, not that he didn’t think they wouldn’t be, because he didn’t know why his parents wouldn’t love Keith the way Lance did. It’s just that he wanted everything to be perfect since, according to Keith, this would be his first Christmas. While Lance did find it odd, he didn’t question it since he knew there were people out there who didn’t celebrate it.

Another couple of minutes passed, and Lance was about to pound on the door again when it finally opened to reveal Keith standing there with a towel around his waist. Keith raised an eyebrow at him but didn’t say anything as he moved into the bedroom. They’d only lived together for a month, so it was only now that Lance noticed that it took Keith forever to blow dry his hair. Not that Lance was complaining - whatever Keith did, his hair was always perfect - but it made Lance curious about his beauty care secrets, especially since Keith knew all his.

“What should I wear to your parents’ house?” Keith asked, standing in front of his side of the closet with a quizzical look as if he still didn’t grasp the concept of clothes. All his clothes looked new and crisp next to Lance’s worn out clothes that had seen better days. “I want to wear something traditional.” He pursed his lips like he was doing rocket science instead of just picking out something to wear. “I don’t want to stand out.”

“Either way you’re going to stand out,” Lance said as he wrapped his arms around Keith, though he didn’t miss the frown that appeared on his face. “Not that it’s a bad thing. I’m just saying, you’re a new addition to the family. You’re going to stick out, but that doesn’t mean you’re not going to fit in. Just be yourself. I know you’ll do fine.”

“I guess I’m just imagining everything that could go wrong.” A small pout formed on Keith’s lips. His brow furrowed, causing stress lines to appear on his forehead. “I keep running every scenario over in my head, and it’s not good.” He sighed heavily, turning his eyes onto Lance. “What if I do something wrong? You know that I’m not the best with people. What if I say something wrong? What if I-?” He bit his lip, looking as if he had more to say, but quickly withdrew into himself. “I just want your family to like me.”

Lance cut him off by leaning down to press a kiss into Keith’s lips. “They’re going to love you. Like how I love you.” He touched their foreheads together. “Now stop stressing and get dressed. I’m going to load up the car with the presents. By the time I get back, I want you ready to go, or I’m carrying you out while you’re still in your towel.”

Keith chuckled. “I’ll make sure I’m dressed.” A small, playful smile appeared on Keith’s lips. “I know you’d be way too happy carrying me outside in just a towel, and we can’t have that.” He pulled Lance in for another kiss. “I’ll meet you outside, okay, babe? Just get everything ready for us to leave. I promise I won’t be much longer.”

“You know it would,” Lance hummed, wiggling his eyebrows at Keith. The full-body laugh that resulted from Keith was worth it, and he gave him one last kiss before leaving so that he wouldn’t distract Keith any more than he had already. He made his way out of the bedroom, down the hallway of the house towards the kitchen where he left the presents for his family. It still amazed him that he had a house, a boyfriend, and an extension on his deep-sea research grant. Having all that almost made him want to drive down to the local high school to rub it in Iverson’s face, but he didn’t. Keith had forbidden him from doing so.

When he reached the kitchen, Lance took count of the pile of presents again, and then a third time. He was just as nervous as Keith was about this, but he knew himself. If he let himself spiral, his voice was going to get high and squeaky, then he’d get snappy because he was panicking, which he felt as if he was doing right now. Lance took a deep breath, and another, trying to calm down, and then grabbed some of the presents to begin carrying them to the car.

It took him two trips to stow the presents into the trunk, and by the time he returned to grab the dip that they promised to bring, Keith was ready, standing in the kitchen. He didn’t seem to notice Lance had entered and was instead downing a bottle of water. Lance stared at him, taking in how he looked in the red button-down shirt and black dress pants, and he was almost ninety percent certain that he was dating a model who only pretended to work as a treasure diver.

Keith’s eyes flickered to Lance, finally noticing that he was there. “Is everything ready to go?” he asked as he tossed the water bottle into a bag hanging up on the pantry door, ready to be refilled later. There were already several in there, despite Lance filling them up just this morning. It always seemed like Keith was chugging one.

“Yeah,” Lance said, as he moved past Keith to go to the fridge. He opened it, and Keith took that opportunity to grab another water bottle. “I swear you’re a fish,” he muttered to himself while scanning the contents of the fridge for his dip. As he said that, though, Lance heard Keith begin to choke behind him, which turned into a coughing fit. Lance glanced over his shoulder at Keith. “You okay?”

“Just went down the wrong pipe,” Keith replied, clearing his throat. He took another drink of water, and if Lance didn’t know any better, he could have sworn that Keith was hiding something. “Come on. We’re going to be late. Get your spicy dip or whatever so that we can get on the road. It’s like a two-hour drive to your parents’ house, isn’t it?”

Lance shook his head, getting the thought out of his head. “Right, sorry. Guess I was just worried.” He returned his attention to the fridge, finding his dip underneath the leftover kelp from when Keith cooked two days ago. “Found it,” he said, holding up the container to Keith, not missing the way he wrinkled his nose at it. “Don’t give me that look. You eat kelp and seaweed as snacks.”

Though Keith snorted, he didn’t protest the facts. Lance laughed, loving the indignant look on Keith’s face. He stood and grabbed the insulated bag he had set aside that morning, shoving the dip inside. Keith was still side-eyeing the bag, so Lance kissed his cheek then took his hand, giving it a kiss before they began to walk to the car together. Lance grabbed the keys off the hook. They entered the garage, and since Keith didn’t know how to drive, he moved to the passenger seat, getting in as Lance put the bag in the back. He watched Keith take another sip from the bottle, scratching at the side of his neck. For some reason, since they moved in together, Lance couldn’t stop noticing weird quirks about Keith. Not that they were a deal breaker, but it made something in the back of his mind ping, as if he was trying to put together a puzzle without all the pieces.

Thinking that, though, made Lance feel like a bad boyfriend, so again, he forcefully shoved the thoughts from his mind and got in the car, so he could begin driving. It wasn’t much longer before they were on the road and heading towards Lance’s parents’ house. Lance glanced over at Keith, who was quiet and staring at the passing scenery as they drove. He remembered the first time Keith had been in a car, according to him, and had gotten so alarmed when it began moving. Now, Keith seemed comforted by it, which made Lance happy for some reason.

They drove in a calm silence with Lance’s music playing in the background. Lance sang along while Keith hummed to the ones he liked. Sometimes, they made conversation with Keith asking how Lance’s research was going, and Lance wondering if Keith had any more stories about shipwrecks he’d salvaged. The time passed quickly, and Lance didn’t think it would ever stop surprising him how easy it was to be with Keith.

Lance parked on the curb of his parents’ house since the driveway was already filled with cars. He could see his brothers’ cars, and his sisters’, along with all his aunts’ and uncles’. It seemed as if the two of them were the last to arrive. That would mean heckling from his siblings, which was why he’d tried to leave early. Somehow, Lance was always the last to arrive at these family meetings.

With a heavy sigh, Lance grabbed the dip from the backseat, hooking his bag around his elbow, while Keith went to the trunk to retrieve the presents. After getting the dip, he went to back to help Keith, only to see that he had all the presents in his arms, not appearing to be breaking a sweat. “Aren’t those heavy?” Lance asked with a frown. “Do you want me to take some from you?”

Keith’s eyes widened slightly as if something had quickly dawned on him before his arms drooped slightly. “Yeah, they’re super heavy,” he said, with a slight strain in his voice. Lance raised an eyebrow as Keith pushed the pile of presents towards him. “If you could take a few of them that would be appreciated.”

Lance continued to eye Keith suspiciously, the thoughts from earlier this morning still floating through his head. However, he shook them off, again, knowing that there wasn’t anything strange about Keith. Well, there was, but it was something that Lance had grown fond of over the past few months. This felt like something else. Maybe it was because Keith was nervous, or maybe it was because Lance was bringing him to meet his parents, but a nagging part at the back of his head just wouldn’t let it go.

Ignoring it, or trying his best to, Lance walked with Keith to the door and rang the bell. He could see Keith shifting beside him nervously. Running could be heard from inside, tiny feet slamming hard against the floor, and it didn’t surprise Lance when the door opened, and he saw his niece, Maricela, at the door. “Tío Lance!” she cried out with a grin before she pulled him into a hug. However, she wasn’t very tall and only managed to put her arms around his waist, face burying into his stomach. “Papa got me a fish for Christmas! I brought him with!”

“Did he now? You’ll have to introduce us, then!” Lance exclaimed with a small chuckle. He glanced over at Keith, hoping to share in the joke, but instead he saw a somber look on Keith’s face. “But, you should say hi to Tío Keith first, though.” He bit his lip as Keith’s expression went blank. “He- He might be joining our family soon, so you should treat him like how you treat me, got it, kiddo?”

Lance nudged her with his elbow, and Maricela released Lance, so she could edge her way towards Keith. She looked up at him as Keith looked down at her. “Hey, Tío Keith, I’m Maricela,” she said with a small wave of her hand. She tugged at her shirt nervously as they stared at each other. “Do you want to see my fish, too?”

“Hey, Maricela,” Keith replied, shifting awkwardly as he readjusted the presents in his hands. His nose wrinkled slightly. “And I don’t think it’s your fish. The fish is its own person and-” Tears began to fill Maricela’s eyes, and Lance shot Keith a hard glare. “I mean, I’d love to see ‘your’ fish. I was just... joking?”

Maricela sniffled but nodded her head as she rubbed at her eyes. “I’ll go get him then. I left him upstairs, so Fluffy wouldn’t get in the way.” She frowned at Keith one last time, before she hurried away, running up the stairs. Lance watched her go, and he could see some of his other nieces and nephews running about playing as they waited for dinner to be finished. He’d greet them later, when he didn’t have presents in his hands.

“What the cheese?” Lance hissed at him. He moved closer, staring Keith down. For the most part, Keith did look ashamed, eyes downcast, unable to meet Lance’s gaze. Sucking in a breath, Lance calmed himself down. “I know you’re not used to talking with people, Mister Grumpypants, but you can’t talk to a kid like that, okay?” He leaned forward, giving Keith’s cheek a quick kiss. “You’ll get the hang of this. I know you will.”

“Thanks,” Keith muttered, but his mood didn’t seem to lighten. Silence took hold of the air between them, and Lance knew by now that Keith wasn’t going to say anymore as he began to overanalyze the situation in his head. Sometimes, he was worse than Lance with the self-doubt, especially since Keith tended to keep a lot of his feelings to himself. It made Lance wonder what he was hiding, which made him feel like a bad boyfriend, again.

“Let’s go put the presents down, so you can meet the rest of the McClain clan.” Lance grinned, trying to look cheerful, and to have enough Christmas spirit for them both. Anxiety began to rise in Lance that maybe he’d pushed Keith into this a little too soon, and by having him come along he was ruining Keith’s first Christmas.

Still, they were here now, and Keith didn’t seem to be complaining, which he wasn’t afraid to do, so Lance kicked off his shoes and waited Keith to do the same before he led Keith into the living room. As they entered, Lance took in the tree and smiled at some of his other relatives who were hanging around playing dominoes on the coffee table while waiting for dinner. Keith froze as soon as he entered the living room, eyes transfixed on the tree in front of them. It wasn’t anything special, plastic as always with multicolored light strings underneath white tinsel. There were too many ornaments on the tree, each one for a different first that happened over the years. Only, Keith wasn’t looking at it like that. The way his mouth hung open and eyes widened comically, Lance would have thought he struck gold.

“This is Christmas?” Keith asked as he looked over the tree. His eyes flickered over everything, taking in each ornament that hung on the tree, staring at the star on top of it. He tilted his head to the side, inspecting it closely. “You put this up every year? And how do you get it through the door? And why do you put the lights up on it? And the shiny string?”

Lance hummed contemplatively, not able to tell if Keith was being serious or not. “Yeah, I guess that’s part of Christmas,” Lance said as he put the presents down, sliding them under the tree with the rest of the gifts. “It’s fake, plastic, so Dad just takes it down and puts it up every year. It’s not that hard. The shiny stuff is tinsel. Then we put it all up because it’s pretty. You really don’t know all of that already?”

Giving Lance a half-shrug, Keith placed his presents next to Lance’s. It was starting to get on Lance’s nerves. While he knew it shouldn’t, he couldn’t stop himself being irked that there was something Keith was hiding from him. He put his hand on Keith’s elbow, prepared to ask him, when Keith looked up suddenly. Lance followed his gaze to see Marco, his brother and Maricela’s father, standing above them, was holding a piece of mistletoe above their heads. Everyone always said that if Lance was a little older and had broader shoulders, they could be twins, but Lance never saw it.

“Marco, this is Keith. Keith, this is Marco,” Lance said flatly as he introduced his annoying eldest brother to Keith. A wide grin spread across Marco’s face as he continued to dangle the mistletoe over both of their heads. “He thinks he’s so funny. You can just ignore him. Everyone knows he’s not Mom’s favorite.”

“Ouch, that hurt.” Marco put a hand to his chest, grimacing as though he had been shot. “Come on, Lan, this is the first time you’ve brought someone home for Christmas. You can’t tell me that I’m not allowed to have a little fun.” He shook the mistletoe above their heads again. “Kiss already. It’s tradition.”

Keith continued to stare up at the mistletoe, a look of concentration on his face. Lance watched him, trying to figure out what was going on in his head, until Keith was moving, hand going behind Lance’s neck to rest and entwine his fingers with the hair there. Leaning forward, Keith passionately pressed a kiss into his lips, and Lance lost track of where he was for a moment, only to have the cheers of his brother and some other members of his family bring him back.

Heat filled Lance’s cheeks and he buried his head in his hands. He couldn’t believe he did that in front of everyone. “What the heck, Marco!?” Lance exclaimed, unable to look anyone in the eye, most of all Keith. “You really think that’s funny!?” Though, it wasn’t as if Lance hadn’t done the same whenever his brother brought home a girl, not that he was going to mention that. “You’re so immature.”

“Why are you angry?” Keith asked, tilting his head to the side. Lance could see him through the slits of his fingers, and the way he looked so confused made Lance’s face grow even redder. “He said that it was tradition.” He leaned in, and now that he was closer, Lance could see a tiny bit of a smile on Keith’s face. “Didn’t you like it?”

Lance huffed then took a breath. When he felt calmer, he took his hands away from his face to cross his arms over his chest. “I hate the both of you.” Keith and Marco laughed, which only made Lance glower more. “You laugh now, but I’m going to have my revenge.” He waggled a finger between the two of them. “When you least expect it, that’s when I’ll strike.”

“I’ll sleep with one eye open then,” Marco said with a loud laugh. He rubbed his thumb against his nose, a sly expression on his face. His eyebrows wiggled at them, and Lance rolled his eyes. “So...” his brother continued in an annoyingly smug voice. Lance could only imagine how much Marco was enjoying getting payback. “How’d you two meet?”

“It’s actually a really cute story, if you must know.” Lance wrapped an arm around Keith’s shoulder. “It was during my solo research. I was out collecting samples to bring back to the lab, as I usually do, when I see him staring at me. I called him over, but then he dove under. I made an excuse to borrow the boat then just kept going back until I saw him again.”

Keith smiled and leaned further into Lance. “He was very persistent,” he said as he glanced up at Lance. “Though, I didn’t really know that you were looking for me specifically when you kept coming out to the ocean.” Lance’s cheeks turned red again, and Keith chuckled. “Don’t worry. I think it’s cute that you had a crush on me.”

“I didn’t have a crush on you,” Lance protested, though his ears began to burn. “If you think I had a crush on your stupid mullet then you’re just as dumb _as_ your stupid mullet. I was just curious. You were really far out, and I wanted to know what you were doing.” He cleared his throat and adjusted his collar. “A crush. Really full of yourself there, Kogane.”

“Maybe.” Keith’s eyes softened as he rested his head on Lance’s shoulder. Though he could still see Marco, grinning out of the corner of his eye, Lance couldn’t stop himself from reaching out to push a strand of hair that had fallen into Keith’s eyes. Maybe Keith was acting oddly today, but in the end, he was still his boyfriend, and Lance loved him.

Lance was tempted to lean in and give him another kiss, but he knew he had other places to be. “I’ll be right back,” Lance said, pulling away from Keith. “I’ve got to drop off my world-famous dip in the kitchen.” He motioned to the bag on his elbow with a flourish of his hand. “I have to give the people what they want.”

“Which isn’t your dip,” Marco muttered, and Keith gave him a small, traitorous nod. Lance stuck out his tongue at them, not caring he was a grown adult with a job, and then turned quickly on his heel. He walked out of the room, giving a wave to his other relatives before he left, and made his way down the hallway to the kitchen.

As he entered, he could see his mother, Ana, standing at the island counter. Everything seemed to be done, already in the oven or simmering on the stove, but she was working on something, though Lance couldn’t see what as she had her back to him. He could see some flour on her cheek, humming to herself as she worked, and it made Lance happy to know that she hadn’t changed, despite everyone moving out of the house.

Being as quiet as he could, Lance tiptoed up to her and then wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into a hug. Ana jumped, quickly covering what she was working on with a dishtowel. She glanced over her shoulder, placing a hand to her heart when she saw that it was Lance. “You startled me,” she said as she turned in his arms to return the hug, nearly breaking his back. “I didn’t think I’d get to see you for another hour!”

“Hey!” Lance huffed. “I’m never that late, am I?” He frowned, trying to recall the last few family gatherings that they’d had. “I guess I just wanted to get here early because of Keith.” Pulling back, he rubbed at the back of his neck sheepishly. “We were both kind of nervous and wanted to get out the door as soon as possible.”

Ana grinned, placing her hands over her mouth in excitement. “He’s here? You brought Keith here?” She glanced around Lance, as if expecting Keith to be hiding behind him. “Where is he?” She sounded giddy, though he could understand why. Lance never brought anyone home for the holidays, not because he didn’t want to, but no one was interested before Keith. He didn’t blame her for being excited.

“He’s in the living room talking with Marco.” Lance fought the urge to roll his eyes at the mention of Marco, since he didn’t want to get scolded by his mom. “They’re talking about how bad my dip is, but I know you appreciate it.” He opened the bag dangling on his arm and presented the dip to her with a smile. “Right, Mom?”

“Of course,” Ana said cheerfully, though her nose wrinkled like Keith’s and Marco’s did when Lance presented his dip to them. “I’ll put this out with the rest of the snacks later.” She took it and the bag from him, sliding the dip back inside before she placed it on the counter behind her. “I want to see the boy you brought home first.”

Lance’s eyes remained on the dip, having a feeling it wasn’t going to make it out of the kitchen, but still, he grinned. “Yeah, sure.” He was always happy to show Keith off. It still baffled him how he ended up with someone as perfect as Keith. “You’re going to love him, Mom. He’s so amazing. I’ve never met anyone like him before.”

Wiping her hands on her apron, Ana walked out of the kitchen with Lance back to the living room. They stood at the entryway looking in as Keith had moved with Marco to the couches with the other relatives, who looked like they were unsuccessfully teaching Keith how to play dominoes from the confused glare he had on his face. No one seemed to notice Lance and Ana in the doorway, and Lance couldn’t help but lean on the doorframe to watch.

“He’s so cute,” Ana said, leaning over to whisper to Lance, not wanting to interrupt the game. Keith placed down a piece, only to have Marco tell him that wasn’t right. “And he seems to be getting along with everyone else. Just like one of the family.” A smirk played on her lips, making Lance realize where he got that from. “Do you plan to add him to the family?”

Lance blushed and crossed his arms over his chest defensively. “Maybe,” he reluctantly admitted, keeping his voice low. His eyes softened as he continued to stare at Keith, though, unable to stop himself since he knew how much he loved him. “He’s the one, Mom. There’s something special about him. I know I’m going to marry him.”

“I’m glad,” she said, reaching up so that she could pull him down to kiss Lance’s forehead. “I know you’ve been looking for someone to love for so long. You deserve to be happy.” Ana then pulled back, patting Lance’s cheek. “Call him over. I have something I want to give him, but I need to put the finishing touches on it.”

“Was it that thing you were working on in the kitchen?” Lance asked slyly, but Ana only put a finger to her lips, meaning that Lance was right. He watched her walk back to the kitchen before he turned his attention back to Keith. If anything, Keith seemed more confused than before. “Hey, Keith!” he called out after another moment. “Come over here.”

Keith looked relieved, and he barely said anything, even as the others said goodbye, so that he could rush to Lance’s side. He looked flustered with red coloring his cheeks, making Lance wonder what had happened while he was talking with his mom in the kitchen. His expression sobered, putting a hand on his hip once he neared. “Yeah?”

“My mom said she has something she wants to give you,” Lance told him. Keith frowned, brow furrowing as it did when he became worried. “I think she likes you, though. At least, from when she saw you playing dominoes.” He mimicked Keith’s pose, moving a hand to his hip, too. “And I don’t know why she wouldn’t. You’re a great catch.”

“I’m not a ‘catch’,” Keith protested, clearly offended. “I’m a free-” He cut himself off, biting at his lip as if to stop himself from saying something he shouldn’t. His eyes flickered to the floor, hand resting on his chin. “I’m a free human?” he said, though he didn’t sound too certain about the phrasing. “Either way, she should know that you didn’t catch me. You should let her know that I’m with you because I want to be.”

“I’ll make sure to let her know when we see her,” Lance muttered sarcastically. He couldn’t stop that thought from nagging at the back of his mind. “She’s in the kitchen. I’ll show you.” He waved Keith on with his hand and then began to walk the short distance to the kitchen with Keith lagging slightly behind him.

As Keith ambled slowly after Lance, it was then Maricela came rushing in with her fishbowl in hands. “Tío Lance! Tío Lance! I got Fluffy! Look!” She continued to run forward with the fish bobbing as the water splashed out of the bowl and onto the floor as she ran excitedly. Lance moved to stop her, but it was too late. Maricela’s foot stepped into one of the puddles, causing her to slip. She released the fishbowl as she fell backwards, sending it flying.

The fishbowl soared, and in slow motion, Lance could see it barreling towards Keith’s head. He reached for it as his niece continued to slip backwards, but it was too late, and splashed all over Keith, drenching him from head to toe. However, an odd thing happened as the bowl clattered to the ground, smashing into a thousand pieces. Keith fell with it, as if his legs suddenly gave out on him and his pants ripped and tore. Lance’s jaw dropped as in front of him was Keith, but instead of legs, he had a bright red fish tail that flopped uselessly on the hardwood floor.

Quickly, before his niece could get to her feet, Lance scooped Keith up into his arms, so he could make a run for the bathroom. The gasping and screaming alerted him that his family was beginning to make their way into the hallway to check on the noise. He quickened his pace, ignoring the shouts behind him, wanting to know what was going on. That was what Lance wanted to know, too, as he rushed through the open door of the bathroom and slammed it shut behind him with a kick of his foot.

Lance deposited Keith into the bathtub then quickly locked the door, just in case anyone got curious. Keith had the decency to look embarrassed, not making eye contact with Lance, choosing instead to stare at his shirt, which was soaked but still intact. Now that Lance wasn’t panicking, he could see Keith’s tail clearly. It was red, but there were also hints of black spots that lined his tail with a softer red on Keith’s underbelly. His tail was fleshy, rubbery, like a dolphin’s.

Keith reached back, turning on the water, putting his hands quickly under as it filled. It was then that Lance realized that Keith had Fluffy in his hands. Lance watched him care for the fish, remembering how disturbed Keith looked when he first heard about it. He watched Keith adjust the water with a serious gaze as he helped the goldfish get used to the water in the bathtub.

Mouth opening, Lance wanted to ask Keith what was going on, but a knock on the door interrupted him. “Lan?” came Marco’s questioning voice. “Lan, you two okay in there?” Lance took a deep breath, not answering because he didn’t know how. “Maricela said she saw you take off running with Keith in your arms. Is everything okay? Mom’s real worried about you.”

“Keith-” Lance paused, looking at Keith, who shrugged unhelpfully. He couldn’t tell his brother that his boyfriend was a fish, but then he remembered the fishbowl and how it had shattered. “The fishbowl ripped through his pants and cut his leg, Marco. It’s not deep, but his pants are ruined, and shirt’s covered in fish poop. Do you think I can get a change of clothes for him while I clean the wound?”

“Of course,” Marco replied, sounding worried. It relieved Lance that he seemed to buy his story. He hated lying to his brother, but there weren’t many options right now. “If you need anything else let me know. And tell Keith that we hope he’s okay, and that if it ends up that he needs to go to the hospital then we’d gladly take him.”

“I’ll let you know if anything changes,” Lance said, trying to rush along the conversation. His eyes glanced over to Keith, where he was smiling at Fluffy swimming around in the tub. “And tell Maricela that Fluffy is okay. Keith caught him, and we put him in the bathtub. Maybe get a pitcher of water to put him in?”

After Marco agreed to get what Lance asked for and left, Lance moved away from the door, sighing heavily. He ignored Keith in the bathtub, needing to get his head together before he looked at him, and instead began to search through the cabinets and drawers, digging through them with a scowl on his face. Lance knew he shouldn’t speak, since his anger would only make this worse, but he couldn’t help but ask, “Diver, huh?”

“That was your assumption. You’re the one who thought I was human. You asked me what I was doing, and I told you that I was looking for treasure when I saw your boat. I said nothing about me being human.” Out of the corner of his eye, Lance could see him glaring at him in annoyance as Keith took off his soaked shirt. “And whatever you’re looking for, do you really need it _now_?”

“Well, it’s usually a safe assumption since you shouldn’t exist!” Lance then got down on his knees to check the cabinet under the sink, throwing the toilet paper behind him as he grabbed a large toiletry bag and opened it, so he could dig through it, too. “I’m looking for a hairdryer. I might be mad at you, but I’m not going to leave you like this. At least I finally know why you take so long in the bathroom.” He took in a deep breath, knowing he needed to calm down. “And that’s not why I’m mad. You didn’t tell me. We’ve been dating for months, you moved in with me, and you kept this from me.”

Keith chewed at his lip, tail flopping about as the fight drained out of him. “I’m sorry, Lance. I didn’t think we’d be serious.” His hand moved to his tail, rubbing down the sides of the smooth surface nervously. “I guess I was worried if you knew, you’d- I don’t know. I knew you wouldn’t be like the scientists my brother warned me about, but I still worried that you’d stop wanting to be around me if you knew. In fact, I was worried you wouldn’t want to be around me even if you didn’t know.”

Lance stopped his search for the hairdryer to pause and look at Keith. “What?” He turned and leaned against the toilet bowl lid, taking in the full image of his boyfriend, who happened to be a mermaid, in the bathtub. It felt like the weird dreams he used to have when he was a teenager, yet here Keith sat. “Why would you think that I would ever leave you, Mullet? You know I’m head over heels for you.”

“Because,” Keith began, nose wrinkling as his eyes filled with pain. Lance was about to tell him that he didn’t have to say anything, but everything was spilling out of Keith before Lance could stop him. “Because everyone I’ve ever loved has left me. First it was my mom. She joined a different pod without me. Then my dad died. The only other person I ever thought of as family just disappeared one day. And I was kicked out of my second pod! It’s why today was so important. I thought your family could be my family, but I messed that up!”

Keith slammed his fists into the water of the tub before he sank down to hide underneath it. Fluffy swam above him, which ruined the seriousness of Keith’s outburst a little bit, but Lance tried to keep a straight face as he edged closer to the tub, placing his arms against the lip of it before resting his chin on them. Lance stared down at Keith, who was pouting and making air bubbles as he sulked.

“How’d you mess it up? Everyone loves you. I mean, you haven’t met everyone yet, but you’ve got fifty percent of the McClain clan on your side.” Lance didn’t know if Keith could hear him under there, but all he really knew how to do was talk. “And if they didn’t...” He let his fingers trace the surface of the water, noticing how Keith’s eyes followed their movements. “You’d have me. The whole mermaid thing is weird, but you’re the one. I don’t know if that means anything to you, but I want to be your family.”

As with the mistletoe, it was with a quick movement that Keith popped out of the water, wet hand finding the back of Lance’s neck. Water ran down Lance’s shirt, soaking it slightly, but he didn’t care as Keith’s lips pressed into his. Lance instantly melted into Keith, kissing him back with just as much force. Maybe even a little more, since he wanted Keith to know that he’d always have a place with him, even if Lance needed a bit more time to get used to Keith being a mermaid.

Keith’s other hand moved to Lance’s chest, getting even more of Lance’s clothes wet. They probably would have kept kissing if a loud knock on the door didn’t interrupt them. “Lan?” Marco asked. “I hear make out noises in there.” He pounded on the door again, and Lance regretted playing the role of the bratty younger brother now. “Is everyone decent?”

Breaking away from Keith, Lance shouted, “Shut up, Mardumbo! We were just kissing!” Lance got to his feet and made his way to the door opening it a crack. Marco stood on the other side with a wide grin on his face, clearly enjoying himself. Still, he had what Lance had asked for, so he couldn’t be too angry at him. “Keith isn’t dressed. Would you mind passing everything to me through the crack? He’s embarrassed enough as it is.”

“Yeah, sure,” Marco replied, grinning even wider. He passed the pitcher of water through the crack first, followed by a pair of old jeans and a white button-down shirt. “Dad said Keith could use his clothes, but he expects them back and dry cleaned after you guys get home.” He paused, growing a bit more serious. “Sorry about Maricela, by the way. I gave her a talking to. She knows to be more careful with her pet next time.”

“Don’t mention it. She was just excited,” Lance said with a wave of his hand. He could hear Keith huff angrily behind him, but Lance laughed loudly to cover the sound. “We’ll be out in a minute. Just got to get Fluffy in his temporary new home then get Keith dry. Tell Mom not to start dinner without us, okay?”

“Not going to make any promises.” Marco smiled, seeming to be in brighter spirits. Lance watched him leave, waiting until he saw him go back into the living room before he shut the door and turned his attention back to Keith. He set the clothes aside, not wanting to get the new set wet, and walked over with Fluffy’s temporary home.

“If she’s not responsible enough to take care of a fish then she shouldn’t have one,” Keith informed Lance as he knelt next to the tub again. “If I wasn’t there, ‘Fluffy’ would be dead. This fish belongs out in- He’s freshwater, so I don’t know where he belongs, but he doesn’t belong in that.” He pointed an accusing finger at the pitcher of water. “I’m not putting him in there.”

“He can’t live in the bathtub,” Lance chided, and he reached into the tub to pull the fish out himself, but Keith swatted his hand away. “Keith, she’s not our kid. I can’t tell her what she can or can’t have. I agree with you. If Maricela can’t handle a fish, she shouldn’t have one, but by telling Marco that, all that will do is start a fight. Though, you know, you’re Tío Keith now, you could teach her about proper fish care, if you wanted.”

Keith huffed and pouted for a moment more before he sighed, reaching into the tub to pull out Fluffy. He cupped the fish in his hands, and it was odd to see, but Fluffy didn’t look as he was gasping for air as Keith deposited him into the pitcher of water. “When we have our kid, they aren’t going to enslave fish,” Keith said as he watched Fluffy swim around.

While Lance knew he should be more focused on the weird mermaid powers, he couldn’t help but focus on a different set of words. “Our kid?” Lance repeated hopefully. They’d never talked about it before. Lance had wanted them, but Keith never seemed like the type. Though, he supposed there was a lot that Lance didn’t know about him, if Keith’s tail was any indication of that.

“Our kid,” Keith agreed with a grin. Not able to help himself, Lance pulled Keith into another kiss. Lance was able to restrain himself better this time, and he resumed his search for the hairdryer, finding it in the second toiletry bag that was hidden under the sink. He helped Keith out of the tub, placing him on the toilet seat lid. As he set Keith down, Keith reached out and moved a strand of hair out Lance’s eyes. “But first, you should marry me.”

Lance fumbled with the hairdryer, nearly sending it into the tub. “You want me to what?” His mouth dropped open suddenly. He knew he’d just told his mom that he wanted to marry Keith, but he’d envisioned the proposal slightly more romantic, not in the bathroom of his parents’ house, next to a goldfish while he was about to dry his boyfriend’s legs back into existence.

“I want you to marry me. Like they do on the beaches with those fancy white dresses and the black suits.” Keith pulled his tail up, hugging it to his chest. He looked away, shrugging his shoulders. “Unless you don’t want to, that is. I know it’s a lot to take in at once, so I’d understand if you said no.”

“Don’t be stupid.” Lance plugged the hairdryer in and then directed it at Keith’s tail. This wasn’t how he imagined spending his Christmas. “Of course, I want to marry you. But humans don’t just ask, though. Don’t they have like-” He waved his hand, searching for the words he wanted, but it was hard to think over the sound of the hairdryer. “Mermaid mating rituals or something?”

“I don’t know.” Keith frowned and looked off to the side embarrassed. “I was kicked out of my second pod when I was sixteen, and I don’t remember what the rituals entailed since I never witnessed one.” He wiggled his fin, which was slowly melting into toes, and Lance was trying his hardest not to freak out at the sight of that. “I am having the instinct to give you something shiny. Do humans have that, too?”

“That’s a good instinct,” Lance said with a chuckle. He took a breath, surprising himself at how he was able to keep it together. “But you don’t have to get me something shiny or do anything special. I want to marry you, and that’s enough. We’ll talk about this more when we’re home, though. If we spend any more time in here, everyone is going to continue to worry about you, or think we’re-” Blush colored his cheeks. “You know.”

Keith chuckled and nodded, then let Lance dry his legs without any more interruptions or marriage proposals. The experience was odd, to say the least. Everything Lance studied over the years, and research he’d done, hadn’t prepared him to watch a complete transformation like this. The curious part of Lance wanted to ask how that worked, but it was a conversation for a different time, especially since Keith seemed on edge when he mentioned scientists. Instead, Lance moved the conversation to presents and teasing Keith about what was waiting under the bed at home for him, since he couldn’t have it until Christmas Day.

It wasn’t much longer before Keith had legs again. Keith wiggled his toes, fascinated by them. Now it made sense why Keith seemed like a fish out of water, because he was one. He then got dressed, and Keith was swimming in the clothes that were a few sizes too large, but it was all they had, and they had to make due. Lance helped him roll up the sleeves and tighten the belt that was attached to the jeans. They still slipped a little, but at least the jeans were staying up on their own without Keith having to hold them.

When they finally exited, everyone was waiting for them anxiously by the door. Lance handed Fluffy back to Maricela as Ana approached Keith. He seemed taken aback by her sudden approach, but he stood his ground, crossing his arms across his chest. Ana grinned then held out her hand to show a handmade ornament made of hardened dough shaped into a star that read “Keith’s First Christmas.” Keith stood there, staring at the ornament, before tears began to steadily stream down his face. Ana wrapped her arms around him, pulling Keith into a tight hug. Lance smiled, glad that he could give Keith the home he deserved.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on my writing journal at [KatsudonAce](https://katsudonace.tumblr.com/) or on my main at [Keithphantom](http://keithphantom.tumblr.com/).


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